Nian Gao Chinese New Year Rice Cake 年糕 Recipes

CHINESE NEW YEAR SWEET RICE CAKE (NIAN GAO)

Steps:

• Prepare two 8-inch round baking pans by brushing the insides with vegetable oil.
• Add 2 cups of water and the ginger to a medium-sized pot, bring it a boil, then let it simmer for 10 minutes over low to medium heat with the lid covered. Turn off the heat, and stir in the brown sugar and allspice until the sugar is dissolved completely. Remove the ginger slices. Now add 1 1/2 cups of cold water to cool down the mixture so its warm, not hot.
• In a large mixing bowl, mix the two kinds of flours together and then slowly add in the sugar water mixture. Stir thoroughly until the batter is smooth (without any lumps). Now stir in the vanilla extract, molasses, orange zest, and 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil until thoroughly combined. The resulting batter should have a consistency similar to condensed milk. If the batter is too thick, add a bit more water a couple tablespoons at a time until the desired consistency is reached.
• Pour the batter evenly into two foil pans. Gently tap the pans against your countertop to get rid of air bubbles. Top each pan with three decorative dates in the center, if using. Put both pans in a double-decker bamboo steamer and steam for about 1 hour on high heat (the water should be boiling, but should NOT be bubbling high enough to touch the foil pans). You might need to add water into the steamer midway to avoid having the water dry up and burn your bamboo steamers.
• After 1 hour, poke a toothpick into the rice cake. It's done if the toothpick comes out clean--just like a regular cake! Regarding steaming techniques, for this recipe and in general, it doesn't matter what type of vessel you use. The core goal here is to use steam to cook the food, which means it's important that the steam doesn't escape.
• For example, if you use bamboo steamer, you will also need a pot that fits the bamboo steamer perfectly so there is no visible steam escaping. If you don't have a pot that fits the bamboo steamer, you will need to put the bamboo steamer inside a much larger pot with a lid and set the bamboo steamer on a rack above the water. Whatever you decide to use, with the correct set up, you should not see steam escaping!

NIAN GAO (CHINESE NEW YEAR RICE CAKE, 年糕)

Steps:

• Soak Chinese dates and walnuts in water overnight. Chop the rehydrated dates (pits removed if any) and walnuts into small pieces by hand or using a food processor (remember to keep one whole date for garnishing later).
• Transfer the chopped dates and walnuts to a large mixing bowl. Add glutinous rice flour and regular rice flour. Mix well.
• Add dark brown sugar, ginger and water to a saucepan. Bring to a boil then leave to simmer (cover with a lid) over low heat for 3 minutes. Remove the ginger from the sugary water then add the oil. Whisk to fully incorporate.
• Pour about 90% of the hot sugar liquid over the flour mixture. Mix and lightly knead. Add the remaining liquid gradually until a soft dough forms. Depending on the evaporation loss while simmering, you may not use all the liquid, or you might need to add a little extra water. Adjust accordingly.
• Brush a thin layer of oil over the inner surface of a 20 cm (8 in) cake tin. Place a piece of baking paper at the bottom. Transfer the dough into the tin. Flatten the surface. Insert the remaining date in the middle of the cake.
• Bring water to a full boil in the wok/pot which you use for steaming. Place the cake tin into the steaming basket or over a steaming rack. Cover with a lid and leave to cook over medium heat for 45 minutes (check the water level halfway through and top up if necessary).
• Let the cake cool naturally in the tin. Then gently take it out. You may slice it and eat it straight away. Or, store it in the fridge, then slice and pan fry in a little oil until both sides blister.
• Put the cake in an air-tight bag/container once completely cooled. You can leave it on the counter for 1 day (unless the room is very warm), or keep it in the fridge for up to 5 days.
• It freezes well too. Slice it into pieces before freezing. Defrost in the fridge then enjoy it at room temperature, or pan-fry it without defrosting.

NIAN GAO (CHINESE NEW YEAR GLUTINOUS RICE CAKE 年糕)

Steps:

• Cook the dark brown sugar slabs and water on medium heat until the sugar has melted. Let it cool until warm.
• Combine the glutinous rice flour and wheat starch in a bowl.
• Pour the sweet syrup into the flour mixture bit by bit while stirring it through. Do this until it's all mixed into a thick but runny batter.
• Lightly oil the surface of your cake tin. We used a 20cm (8") cake tin with a removable base to make to easier to take out.Pro Tip: Keep the oil layer thin so it doesn't make the steamed surface lumpy.Note: When Aunty made it, she used four 15cm (6") round foil trays so she could give them as gifts.
• Use a sieve to hover over the cake tin and pour the batter through. This will help to remove clumps.
• Hold the cake tin and gently tap the base against the counter to force any air bubbles to rise. Use a toothpick to pop the bubbles and smooth out the surface.
• Wrap the top of the cake tin with aluminium foil. Make sure there are no gaps.
• Set your steamer up and steam the batter on high heat for 1 hour or until cooked.
• When ready, take the rice cake out and insert a red date in the middle. You can push the whole date in or halve it and place it on top.
• Slice and serve the Nian Gao immediately as is or lightly pan fry them with egg!